Ruud Kleinpaste: The Bug Man...

Originally from Holland, world famous 'Bug Man' Ruud Kleinpaste has called New Zealand home for over 30 years. His TV career began in 1990, hosting farming documentary series The Enduring Land. He soon made a name for himself talking about bugs on children’s programmes The Early Bird Showand What Now?. Kleinpaste was then a primetime regular on TVNZ’s long-running gardening series Maggie’s Garden Show. Making the documentary The Bug House with producer Bryan Bruce led to international success with Animal Planet’s World’s Biggest Baddest Bugs.

In this ScreenTalk, Kleinpaste talks about:

How bugs are really our overlords and that’s why he loves them

Having to attend elocution lessons for The Enduring Land

Hating having to learn the script verbatim

Talking about bugs with a hyperactive chicken on The Early Bird Show

Educating a generation on What Now?

Adding science to ‘garden porn’ on Maggie’s Garden Show

Explaining why insects infest our dwellings in The Bug House

Wearing a beard made from killer bees on World’s Biggest Baddest Bugs

Scaring a fellow guest with a scorpion on a US talk show

How hosting the Dutch episode of Here to Stay reinforced his love of New Zealand

This video was first uploaded on 3 September 2012, and is available under
this Creative Commons licence.
This licence is limited to use of ScreenTalk interview footage only and does not apply to any video content and
photographs from films, television, music videos, web series and commercials used in the interview.